The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method, a storage medium, and a program. This patent application claims priority based on a Japanese patent application, 2001-752 filed on Jan. 5, 2001, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
In order to settle structural analysis of a substance with high spatial resolving power, it is indispensable to apply a structural analysis method, such as X-ray diffraction or a multidimensional NMR method. In order to apply the X-ray diffraction to a certain substance, it is indispensable that the substance has to be firmly crystallized and the phase can be determined by isomorphous replacement or the like. Moreover, in order to apply the multidimensional NMR method to a certain substance, it is indispensable that the molecular weight of the substance is not so high and that a large quantity of high concentrated samples with high solubility is acquirable.
For a substance which does not fulfill the above-mentioned conditions, structural analysis of the substance has to be done with an electron microscope. However, it is difficult to analyze and determine the three-dimensional structure of single molecule by a widely used cryo-electron microscopic method because its contrast is low and the substance is damaged by irradiation of an electron beam.
In particular, in case that a plurality of molecules form a complex or in case that the structure is changing during performance of a certain function, even if the structure of each molecule is known, there is no means for analyzing properly how the plurality of molecules are arranged or how the molecular structure changes during performance of the function. In such a case, there is no choice but to build a virtual model presuming the most probable structure from existing circumstantial evidences. However, it has been impossible to verify the properness of the virtual model.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to solve such a problem.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a three-dimensional structure verification supporting apparatus for supporting verification of an artificial three-dimensional structure by verifying properness of a three-dimensional simulated image simulated in order to indicate a three-dimensional structure of a substance. The three-dimensional structure verification supporting apparatus includes: a first displaying unit for displaying an simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image assumingly indicating the three-dimensional structure of the substance by shading the three-dimensional simulated image; and a second displaying unit for displaying the three-dimensional image of the substance acquired by experimental structural analysis, where the simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image and the experimental image rotate synchronously.
In the three-dimensional structure verification supporting apparatus of the first aspect, the second displaying unit may display the substance rotationally as if three-dimensional model rotates by sequentially displaying a plurality of shaded two-dimensional images in order of angle as the image, the images being acquired from a plurality of angles. In that case, the two-dimensional images may be gray-scale images acquired by a transmission electron microscope.
The simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image is acquired by processing a plurality of gray-scale image acquired by a transmission electron microscope.
The three-dimensional structure verification supporting apparatus may further include a three-dimensional image generating unit including: a shape simulating unit for simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; a distributing unit for generating gray-scale density-distribution by extending density indicated in the gray-scale image to an angle by which the gray-scale image is captured, and distributing the density; a second integrating unit for generating a three-dimensional gray-scale data which indicates the substance by three-dimensional image data by integrating the plurality of gray-scale density-distribution by the plurality of gray-scale image acquired from a plurality of angles; a first integrating unit for integrating the three-dimensional gray-scale data by the second integrating unit on the shape data; and a data processing unit for generating the three-dimensional image by extracting only the gray-scale data existing in circumference of a shape indicated by the shape data among the three-dimensional gray-scale data.
The three-dimensional structure verification supporting apparatus may further include a three-dimensional image generating unit including: a shape simulating unit for simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; and an image data generating unit for generating a three-dimensional simulated image by distributing the gray-scale data of the gray-scale image around the outline.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a three-dimensional structure verification method of verifying a three-dimensional structure by verifying a three-dimensional simulated image simulated in order to indicate a three-dimensional structure of a substance. The three-dimensional structure verification method includes steps of: displaying an simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image, which is a shaded image of the three-dimensional simulated image, and an image acquired by an experimental structural analysis, with the images rotating synchronously; and verifying a three-dimensional structure by comparing the simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image with the experimental image.
In the three-dimensional structure verification supporting method of the second aspect, the image of the substance may be displayed rotationally as if three-dimensional model rotates by sequentially displaying a plurality of shaded two-dimensional images in order of angle as the image, the images being acquired from a plurality of angles. In that case, the two-dimensional images are gray-scale images acquired by a transmission electron microscope.
The simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image may be acquired by processing a plurality of gray-scale image acquired by a transmission electron microscope.
The three-dimensional structure verification method may further include steps of: simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; generating gray-scale density-distribution by extending density indicated in the gray-scale image of the substance acquired by a projection image capturing apparatus to an angle by which the gray-scale image is captured, and distributing the density; generating three-dimensional gray-scale data which indicates the substance by three-dimensional image data by integrating the plurality of gray-scale density-distribution by the plurality of gray-scale image acquired from a plurality of angles; integrating the three-dimensional gray-scale data of the shape data; and generating the three-dimensional simulated image by extracting only the gray-scale data existing in circumference of an outline indicated by the shape data among the three-dimensional gray-scale data.
The three-dimensional structure verification method may further include steps of: simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; and generating a three-dimensional simulated image by distributing the gray-scale data of the gray-scale image around the outline.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording medium storing thereon a program for supporting verification of an artificial three-dimensional structure by verifying a three-dimensional simulated image simulated in order to indicate a three-dimensional structure of a substance. The program includes: a first displaying module for displaying an simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image, which is a shaded image of the three-dimensional simulated image; and a second displaying module for displaying the image of the substance acquired by experimental structural analysis, and the simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image and the experimental image rotate synchronously.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program for supporting verification of an artificial three-dimensional structure by verifying a three-dimensional simulated image simulated in order to indicate a three-dimensional structure of a substance. The program includes: a first displaying module for displaying an simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image, which is a shaded image of the three-dimensional simulated image; and a second displaying module for displaying the image of the substance acquired by experimental structural analysis, wherein the simulated three-dimensionally shaded model image and the experimental image rotate synchronously.
In the recording medium of the third aspect and in the program of the fourth aspect, the program may further include: a shape simulating module for simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; a distribution module for generating gray-scale density-distribution by extending density indicated in the gray-scale image acquired by a transmission electron microscope to an angle by which the gray-scale image is captured, and distributing the density; a second integrating module for generating a three-dimensional gray-scale data which indicates the substance by three-dimensional image data by integrating the plurality of gray-scale density-distribution by the plurality of gray-scale image acquired from a plurality of angles, a first integrating module for integrating the three-dimensional gray-scale data by the second integrating unit on the shape data; and a data processing module for generating the three-dimensional image by extracting only the gray-scale data existing in circumference of a shape indicated by the shape data among the three-dimensional gray-scale data.
Moreover, the program may further include: a shape simulating module for simulating shape data indicating an outline of the substance using a plurality of first image data of the substance captured from a plurality of angles; and an image data generating module for generating a three-dimensional simulated image by distributing the gray-scale data of the gray-scale image acquired by a transmission electron microscope around the outline.
This summary of the invention does not necessarily describe all necessary features so that the invention may also be a sub-combination of these described features.